I have received your pessimistic and angry letters (that
of 20. V, I received today, 24. V). Some of your accusations
levelled against Chicherin fall on me. For example, I
insisted that the theses on concessions should be sent through
the Germans, in order to show them how seriously we
desire business-like economic relations. (The theses were drawn
up by common consent with the participation of Radek
and other “Left stupids”.) The terms of our concessions
are such that nothing but benefit for us will result if the
Germans accept these terms.

I fully approve your policy, set out in especial detail
in Comrade Joffe’s letters.

Your dissatisfaction with Chicherin is, in my opinion,
exaggerated. But in any case I agree to help you and I ask
you to direct your efforts to practical ways of improving
matters. For this, I would suggest that you precisely
formulate concrete proposals (send me copies of telegrams and
letters, parts that are
strictly practical and brief, for I
simply have no time to read everything). In that case I
promise to try to secure their fulfilment and to check whether
they have been fulfilled.

You must think over how to shift the centre of things
to Berlin to a greater extent (I agree to help in this), and
propose for this purpose very tactful (N.B.) and concretely
practical measures. I shall accept all feasible measures and
endeavour to have them carried out.

If anything can be done to secure peace with Finland,
the Ukraine and Turkey (this is the crux of the matter), we
must always work for this (of course, it cannot be secured
without certain further annexations and tribute payments).
I would give much to hasten such a peace.

Chicherin has given me the text of a Note which Joffe
sent to the German Government on his own account, agreeing
to surrender the ships of the Black Sea Fleet (i.e., to their
removal from Novorossiisk to
Sevastopol)[1] on condition
merely of peace with, the Ukraine. However, our
government in a clearly worded Note (communicated by radio
to Joffe as well) considered it possible to agree to the
removal of the ships to Sevastopol on different conditions,
viz.:
1) peace on all three fronts, i.e., with the Ukraine and
Finland and Turkey;
2) no annexation of Sevastopol.

How could Joffe make such a mistake? How could he
make such a “bad bargain”? How in general he could send a
Note on such an important question on his own account, I
fail to understand....

N.B. Send us Arbeiterpolitik, the Stuttgart
Sozialdemokrat[2] and similar publications, all, complete, 5–10 copies
of each.

Have you begun some legal publication in German? What
precisely? What is the plan of publication and when will it
appear?

Notes

[1]In the spring of 1918 the German interventionists occupied the
Ukraine, invaded the Crimea and approached Sevastopol, where
the Black Sea Fleet was concentrated. On April 29–30, to save
the fleet from the invaders, the Soviet Government transferred it
to Novorossiisk. Ten days after the fleet’s arrival there, the
German Command sent an ultimatum demanding its return to
Sevastopol, threatening otherwise to continue the offensive along the
Black Sea coast. On May 11, the Soviet Government sent a “
Protest to the German Government against the Occupation of the
Crimea”, stating the circumstances of the fleet’s transfer and the
possible conditions for its return to Sevastopol (see present
edition, Vol. 27, pp. 358–59).

All attempts to reach an agreement with, the German
Government on this question were abortive. Having no possibility of
saving the fleet and to avoid surrendering it to the German
imperialists, Lenin issued an order to the Supreme Military
Council for its immediate destruction (see the next document). A secret
instruction of the Council of People’s Commissars ordered the
destruction of all the ships of the Black Sea Fleet and merchant
steamships in Novorossiisk. On June 18–19, 1918, the order of the
government was carried out: most of the ships were sunk off the
Novorossiisk coast.

[2]Arbeiterpolitik—a weekly periodical of scientific socialism, the
organ of the Bremen group of Left Social-Democrats, which in
1919 joined the Communist Party of Germany. It was published
in Bremen from 1916 to 1919.

Der Sozialdemokrat—a daily newspaper, the organ of the
Independent Social-Democratic Party of Württemberg. It was
published in Stuttgart from 1915. In 1921, it became the organ
of the United Communist Party of Württemberg and was
published under the title Kommunist.